Doctors and Alberta government ratify fee agreement

74 per cent of doctors voted in favour of the deal reached last summer that calls for changes to the existing Alberta Medical Association contract in place until 2018.

The amendments include a plan to put doctors in communities that need them, and to improve primary care and information sharing.

It also aims to compensate doctors for time and quality of care given to patients – not just for the number of services provided.

In the past Alberta has relief on a fees-for-service system where doctors bill the government for medical procedures.

Details of the changes and how much they will cost taxpayers were not released.

AMA President Dr. Padraic Carr said the deal is complex but will moderate spending on health care over time.

“We will now be assisting to moderate the rate of growth in physician expenditures, while maintaining quality of care,” he wrote Monday on the AMA website. “This we will do in collaboration with government, sharing risk and responsibility.”

Alberta Health Minister Sarah Hoffman said the agreement will improve patient care and keep the health system sustainable in the long-term.

The province expects to spend almost $20 billion on the health-care system this fiscal year, including $4.6 billion for physician compensation and development programs.

The deal is expected to be signed by the government and the AMA later this week.